Klein didn't do a backflip or cheer for this victory. Only a sigh of relief came from him. Desert Rose was so close to completely slicing and dicing him; his wounds still burned and he felt a little dizzy from the blood loss. It only took a few seconds for him to realize that Desert Rose was actually getting back up. He created distance between him and her by leaping back, though it didn't seem as if the woman was interested in attacking anymore.

"I knew there was something special about you two," she stated tersely. "This is completely unprecedented. No one has ever defeated me. Then again, I've never used my full power." She paused a moment. "And I'm not. Your blood has been spilt and the earth has taken it in. All is fine. Besides, there will always be more sacrifices." Suddenly, she slapped the black dragon tattoo on her arm causing a slight resonance. The tattoo began to glow and from out of a huge column of black smoke that appeared behind Desert Rose emerged an enormous black dragon. Desert Rose then leaped high into the air and landed on its back. The dragon was rather serpentine and had no wings, yet it launched itself into the air and flew away, slithering through the clouds.

And Desert Rose was gone.

Klein turned back to Auza. "Do you think it's okay to let her get away like that?" he asked. "I mean, should we follow her? She seemed to be heading east. Gah...but we have to get that guy's book back. What do we do?" Klein couldn't remember being so frustrated in a long time.

"Just calm down Klein," Auza said quietly, looking off into the sky where the Desert Rose had fled. "There's no reason for us to chase her if she has lost interest in us. Not to mention, we managed to defeat her, despite how tough she is. Be glad for that much."

"For now, let us just continue with our previous goal, although it may be just something Rose had thought up to get us to come along with her. There should be a town we can visit, so let us worry about Rose another time. Come, we will cross this river with haste, but without blunder." Auza moved towards the raft, wondering if there really was a man in trouble.

Klein nodded in response before heading over to the raft. When both were on it, he cut the rope with his sword causing the raft to start to drift towards the opposite bank. Klein realized that normally that would be impossible to do without some sort of oar or similar object with which he could steer the raft, but it seemed as though a proliferation of fish were gathering beneath the raft and carrying it easily across the river. About halfway across, however, the raft stopped and the fish scattered.

"What's going on? Why did the fish leave?" Klein pondered aloud. That's when the river's waters began churning and two mighty serpents burst up from below. They were similar in size and structure, but one had black scales while the other had white. The one with black scales had a white spot on the top of its head while the white one had a black spot in the same place. In unison, they unleashed a horrid sound that caused Klein to shiver. He quickly recovered and drew his sword. "I don't know what's going on, but it seems we're not going anywhere as long as they're here...so they're goin' down!!" he exclaimed. It would be difficult fighting on the raft, but they'd just have to make do.

Figuring that it would be better to be closer to the serpent, Auza stood on the edge of the raft, looking out at the creature with a bored expression. "Let's just get this over with." She said with a sigh.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 2 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

Player Phase 1!

Klein moves to E4.

At this point in time, it would be pointless to launch an attack on the terrifying serpent out in the water. For now, he would focus on getting the fish to come back to the raft until the serpent got closer so he had a wider variety of attacks to use on it. Carefully, he stepped to the side of the raft made kissy noises. "Come on, big fish. Let's get this raft moving, right?!" he tried to say calmly only to wind up practically yelling at the fish. Strangely enough, the fish seemed to be invigorated by his speech and swam right back under the raft.

Klein uses Trigger Command Here Fishy, Fishy on Carrier Fish (E2)!

Last edited by Masquerade on Fri Sep 03, 2010 3:54 pm; edited 1 time in total

"Be bound by the very thing which you fear the most." Auza chanted, holding up her old beads towards the serpent, "Be unable to defend yourself from all inflictions! Now be sealed!" Auza's beads flashed as a glyph appeared over the serpent's head, binding it's ability to attack.

The black serpent closed its eyes and focused. It could see a white aura surrounding the swordsman with its mind's eye. It was that on which he preyed, sucking the aura in which boosted its own inner spirit so that it would be able to fend off magic even more effectively than it already could.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 2 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

Klein moves to E5.

Okay. Now was the time to attack. If that monstrous serpent wanted some action, Klein was going to be sure to give it to him. "It's time to knock it up another notch!" he exclaimed with a confident grin as a sphere of light suddenly surrounded him. He leapt high up off the raft only to descend, his speed increasing, until he slammed into the black serpent. The sphere surrounding him burst allowing him to use the energy to land somewhat safely on the raft. While the serpent was disoriented, Klein raised his hand and dropped it halfway so that a single finger was pointing at the serpent. Almost immediately afterwards, the remaining light energy surrounding the serpent morphed into blades of light that struck it from all around.

Auza, satisfied that the enemy serpent now feared attack, moved over to another part of the raft, and stuck her hand in the water. She gave a whistle to the fish a little distance away, coaxing it back with her hand in the water.

With the enemy properly weakened, the serpent swam through the water until it was right next to the raft. It glared down at Klein with a frightening ferocity known only to the most violent beasts. Its fangs gleamed dangerously and ominously in the midday sun. With a quick movement, it sunk those very fangs into Klein's body, a dark aura seeping into the wounds.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 2 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

Klein waits.

The bite from the fierce monster left Klein shaking in his shoes. His arms and legs refused to move as he stared at the mighty serpent before him. Of course, that did not last, for his vision began to be obscured by a mysterious darkness which only served to increase the fear he was experiencing. In his mind, he tried to focus; he was determined to get past the obstructions placed before him.

Last edited by Masquerade on Mon Dec 06, 2010 11:45 am; edited 1 time in total

Auza turned around, brandishing her beads towards the sea serpent close to Klein. The beads began to glow a light purple color as glyphs appeared along the beast's body. The glyphs suddenly shrunk, planting themselves on the serpent's body, restricting it's movement.

Not pleased with being rendered unable to move, the black-scaled serpent turned his gaze to the witch that had bound him and sprayed several thick ropes of darkness at her. They soared through the air, but when they hit her, no bodily harm was done. Instead, they seeped into her body and wrapped around her very spirit, squeezing it tightly dealing damage that couldn't be seen, but could certainly be felt.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 2 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

Klein attacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein, no longer shaken, took a deep breath and lashed out with his blade at the serpent whom he believed was still in front of him. "Well, there went everything," he said a bit uneasily. This battle was very hard to get into, especially with his vision obscured. These serpents were tricksters and he didn't appreciate opponents who did stuff like this. Then again, he had a few tricks up his sleeve as well. "Come on, you big ugly serpent! Attack me and give me all you've got, pathetic weakling!!" he taunted loudly hoping the serpent would strike him next. No, he's not suicidal.

Klein waits.

Last edited by Masquerade on Mon Dec 06, 2010 1:32 pm; edited 1 time in total

Auza moved forward slightly, preparing to gather more of the lost fish to the raft, but thought against it for a second. She was under a bit of pain from one of the serpents, but it seemed as though it was out of energy now. They still had to be careful of it though. However the other serpent seemed to have regained it's ability to attack, and it was likely not happy with either of them. So, to prepare for it's counterattack, Auza waved her hand over Klein, creating a large glyph in the air. The glyph spun around in the air a few times before placing itself on Klein's chest, leaving an imprint of the glyph there.

Arzalo, with no mana left, lunged down at Klein and sunk a long black fang into the boy's torso, watching as blood began to leak from the wound before pulling back. He was lucky that his partner had recovered from the witch's attack; now they both could wreak havoc upon their prey.

Arzalo waits.

Olazra uses Prism Shine on all enemies! 11 Holy Dmg! (INT)

MP: 37/55

Olazra roared into the sky, happy to be free. It was at that point that two columns of light descended from beyond the clouds and struck down on the two humans on the raft. She hissed in delight as she dove underwater and resurfaced. It was no fun being able to do nothing.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 2 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

R-Ability Haste Counter activates!

Klein counterattacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein counterattacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein attacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

"That's the way!" Klein exclaimed happily as the serpent punctured him. He had been prepared for an attack and immediately launched a counterattack in the form of a couple of slashes to the serpent's body. Not satisfied with that, the swordsman lunged in for a devastating stab, making the serpent bleed just as it had made him...which he now realized really, really hurt.

"Craaaaaap....," he groaned as he clutched the wound, his hand instantly becoming crimson with his own blood. He shook it off and kept his sword at the ready. They were far from done with this ordeal and he wasn't too pleased to see what the serpent had in store for him next.

Klein waits.

Last edited by Masquerade on Mon Feb 07, 2011 9:45 am; edited 1 time in total

While Klein took his time attacking the giant sea-serpent, Auza paused to bend down on her knee and splash at the water, whistling gently to a nearby fish. "C'mere you," Auza said, watching the carrier fish swim under the raft. Satisfied, Auza moved backwards, away from the giant sea-serpent to prepare to get the other fish under the raft.

The serpent roared as it realized what was happening. The two on the raft were just trying to keep it busy whilst the fish returned. It glared at Klein who stood before it and lunged down, biting down on his shoulder, a single fang piercing into his body causing him to scream in pain before withdrawing. The serpent would kill this foolish boy, and then proceed to kill the witch who was coaxing the fish.

Arzalo waits.

Olazra moves to I5.

Seeing its partner struggling against the swordsman, it endeavored to make the battle tip in the other serpent's favor. Slowly, it began to roar. Everything became blurry for a moment, as if time had slowed down before stopping, allowing the rushing of the river to be the only sound. Olazra watched in joy as the target fell to his knees, gaze vacant.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 4 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

Klein gains Haste! [Adrenaline Surge]

R-Ability Haste Counter activates!

Klein counterattacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein counterattacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein attacks Arzalo! 2 hits! 10 Dmg per hit! (ATK)

Klein didn't know what to feel. His shoulder burned with an intensity unknown to him prior to the event, and the warm blood that poured from the wound was starting to saturate the clothes beneath his armor. His body felt weak all of a sudden, but it was here. Yes. This was the point of no return. He stood up suddenly, a wild fire burning in his eyes.

"Don't think you can keep me DOWN!" he shouted excitedly, immediately entering a battle stance, seemingly more energetic than the beginning of this ordeal. He launched two quick slashes at the serpent, a token of his appreciation for being bitten, before adding two more slashes from his sword to the two he already dealt. With his eyesight back, all the hits landed with ease. "Much better," he said and grinned.

Klein waits.

Last edited by Masquerade on Mon Feb 07, 2011 4:44 pm; edited 1 time in total

Auza whistled once more to one of the fish that was further away. They seemed to be paying more attention now than they were earlier. Auza didn't quite understand the brain of a fish, if they had one at all, nor did she understand the process of thought in fish. Of course, she didn't care about any of it, the damned fish just needed to get back under the fucking raft before the sea serpents destroyed it.

That wouldn't be fun. Auza glared at the closest serpent, hissing at them from her mind. After that, Auza simply moved back a few steps, getting ready to call for another fish.

The swordsman was fighting back harder than ever now. What was this power? He just kept going and going. Now was the point that he was supposed to give up and become a nice snack, but no. He refused. The serpent roared as its blood started to leak into the water. It sneered and sunk another fang into Klein, hoping to bring the man down once and for all.

Arzalo waits.

Olazra uses Prism Shine! 11 Holy Dmg! (INT)

MP: 9/55

Olazra once again called down myriad rays of light to strike down those who opposed it, and at the moment, it was the annoyances on the raft. Why would they not fall? The fish...they were getting braver. Olazra shook its head, ignoring that fact. There wasn't anything they could do. The end was inevitable.

{f} - Carrier FishTrigger Command: Here, Fishy Fishy (must be in same row/column as target)(fish move 4 cells per trigger command, so it may have to be used more than once on a single fish)

{~} - Water (cannot be occupied)

{r} - Raft

R-Ability Haste Counter activates!

Klein counterattacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein counterattacks Arzalo! 10 Dmg! (ATK)

Klein uses Herb! [+10 HP Recovered]

HP: 13/40

Klein uses Herb! [+10 HP Recovered]

HP: 23/40

Klein nearly fell unconscious after unleashing his counterattack. Another piercing fang wound and being struck by the rays of light in tandem was not good for his already weakened body. He dug around inside his bag and pulled out a couple of herbs that he stuck onto his tongue and ground up with his teeth before swallowing. He felt a bit better, standing back up slowly and gripping his sword tightly.

"Oh man, I can't let this be the end...NEVER!" he shouted, thrusting his sword into the air a couple of times, completely defiant.

Klein waits.

Last edited by Masquerade on Tue Feb 08, 2011 9:52 am; edited 2 times in total

Auza once again splashed the water in front of her while whistling to the fish. For some reason, she was thinking that the river they were floating in was rather strange. The carrier fish were the ones to drift them over the water, not a paddle or wind. And there were giant sea serpents that looked like they had been interrupted from whatever they were doing before, explaining their anger.

"Shall I bind them to each other?" Auza mused to herself, looking at the serpents, "Or shall I simply ignore their presence and have Klein take care of everything?" Auza looked back at Klein. He seemed to be having a bit of trouble fending off the beasts, but they had medicine, so he shouldn't be dying too soon.

The man refused to die. The serpent understood his words perfectly. What could it do against a swordsman like this? He was more tenacious than a cockroach. Arzalo lashed out at Klein, baring its fangs causing one to scrape across the man's torso. Would he ever die? Surely he would faint from blood loss? With the medicine he took last turn, it seemed as though some of his wounds were healing up. This was bad.

Arzalo waits.

Olazra moves to G4.

The witch. She was gathering those damned fish so they could escape. The mighty serpent roared in anger at realizing this and swam ferociously towards the girl before sinking one of its ivory fangs into her, pulling out viciously causing more blood to taint the waters.

"What are you muttering to yourself over there?" Klein asked the bind witch lightheartedly as he lashed out at the serpent before him in vengeance. He was starting to feel a lot better. Sure, the gash on his chest hurt like hell, but things seemed to be turning slightly in their favor which put a big ol' grin on his face like usual. "Don't tell me you're going crazy this close to the end." He laughed.

Slicing the serpent before him one more time before jumping full force high into the air where he remained, spheres of light falling from the sky and gathering on his sword of which he held up. A blazing aura of light surrounded the weapon, and he descended, sword out and pointed at his target. As soon as the weapon collided with the serpent, it exploded causing light to spew across the area, scathing the other serpent as well...or at least it would have if the other serpent hadn't shrugged the attack off like it was nothing and instead absorbed the energy from the light.

Klein sighed as he landed back on the raft which had been shaken significantly from the attack. The fish were still a bit unsteady, but they were calming down. "Well, at least I got rid of my main target...and now to deal with the other one!"

Klein waits.

Last edited by Masquerade on Tue Feb 08, 2011 12:15 pm; edited 1 time in total

Sure, she was hurting. But did she care? Not in the slightest. The only thing that concerned her at the moment was gathering the final fish to carry them away. Auza moved closer to the edge near that fish and splashed the water, whistling for the final time. She ignored Klein's comments, as usual, and instead yawned at the other serpent that had attacked her. Now that the fish were all gathered under the raft, they could continue on with their trek across the sea.

It was then that when the fish were all safely under their raft that they mustered up the courage to mete out a bit of justice to the larger serpent. How DARE it interfere with their job?! The raft began to sway, slightly at first, but it picked up pace and suddenly, the craft was jetting around the river like crazy, threatening to knock off those who were on it. The raft stopped suddenly, and faced the remaining serpent. No sooner had it stopped did it jet right for the beast. Unsuspecting, the serpent got rammed. Hard. It's body lay unconscious on the shore that Klein and Auza had come from. The fish squirmed excitedly beneath the raft. That showed it.

With the threat of the serpents gone partly thanks to the carrier fish, the duo was allowed to cross over to the other side of the river. The fish seemed awfully happy about not having to deal with the serpents anymore. They brought the raft close to the shore and allowed Klein and Auza to get off of it. Seeing that they'd be needing a way back across the river, the fish kept the raft in the same spot for the time being.

Klein looked back at them and gave them a wave, even though he knew they couldn't return the gesture. Turning away from them, he looked at the area they had arrived in. It was one long single dirt road leading to what appeared to be a rather large and expensive-looking manor, decked out in black in gold. Droopy trees grew to either side of the road adding a touch of misery to the strange place. There didn't seem to be much activity on this side of the river.

"That must be the hideout for the thieves," Klein surmised, shading his eyes from the rays of the sun to get a better look. "So you think Rose was telling the truth about the guy who got his book stolen?"

Last edited by Masquerade on Sat Oct 08, 2011 8:49 pm; edited 1 time in total

Auza looked around the area, it seemed pretty desolate for a thieves' den. Besides the fairly large building standing in the distance. Auza frowned, she had figured that there would be some sort of cave, not an actual building. Normally thieves want to evade notice, but this seemed a bit too glamorous. It was as if they were overconfident that no one would ever find or bother them. Unless, of course, this wasn't actually their hideout.

Auza would only be slightly impressed if this manor was just a distraction from the actual hideout location. The thieves could have set this place up-or stolen it, rather-in order to avoid suspicions of their real hideout.

However, if that wasn't the case, Auza would be disgusted with the thieves' lack of brain power. Such creatures should not be allowed to exist in this world. She would have to banish them to the realm of the Forgotten. Of course, she was going to do that anyway, but still.

Auza ignored Klein's questions and began to walk forward. He was annoying her again with his constant talking. Klein was too excited about every single thing in the world. Auza felt like knowing when she would be rid of this leech would be a good thing.

Klein reached out to stop Auza, but thought better of the idea. If she was walking somewhere, then he figured he'd just better off following her instead of winding up bound to one of the depressing trees. And thus they progressed down the solitary lane...

They stopped. They had to. Standing in their way was a large wrought-iron gate painted black. The manor appeared to be even more gaudy up close. It looked like it would take a ton of money to get it the way it was. These thieves had some interesting tastes.

"Soooo...what now?" Klein proposed, reaching out to touch the gate. It refused to open when he tried to. There didn't seem to be any locking mechanism like a keyhole either. Klein thought about the predicament, but there came rustling from some nearby bushes...

"Oh please," Auza snapped, pushing Klein away from the gates forcefully. She placed her hand near the gate, pointing at it with a few fingers. "I am a Bind Witch. I can open something like this easily," Auza was about to cast her magic when she heard the rustling of bushes behind her. She immediately froze to the spot, listening intently to the sound. Auza's face was emotionless for a long time before her lips curved upward into a small smile, "Maybe my followers can tell me how to open it," she said, turning around to face the bushes. "I know you're there! Come out!" Auza intentionally did not leave any hint that she was not alone. Apparently Klein would never receive recognition from her at this rate.

Klein turned around quickly, recovering from Auza's pushing him aside, and drew his sword. The rustling in the bushes stopped for a moment before a figure emerged.

It was a boy. He stood up straight, brushing green leaves from his dark clothes. He took a defensive stance, his legs shaking. In his right hand, he held a quill pen...that didn't appear to be too dangerous. "O-oh my...was I too loud?" he spoke audibly to no one in particular. It must have just been a thought he decided to voice. He glanced at the two at the gate: a woman and a man. His blue eyes rested upon each of them, not lingering for too long before he relaxed.

"Y-you guys don't seem to be thieves," the boy said, his arms resting at his sides now, casually. "Perhaps you're the ones who've come to help me?"

Klein sheathed his sword and smiled uneasily. "Aha! It must be the book guy, Auza. Rose was telling the truth after all!" He did a backflip and gave her a thumb's up.